The resources required is not valid. Had the US needed more submarines, say the 1100-1200 that germany built, we would have just churned them out.
As for the max depth, had that been an issue, we'd have simply made the pressure hull thicker. It's just a material saving issue—only make the hull as thick as it needs to be. Had we needed thicker hulls, we'd have built them in the numbers required.
The difference in dive time is only critical if you are surprised by a very fast enemy—meaning an aircraft. 15 seconds is not life or death if you have radar, so it's a non-issue.
Regarding patrol times, while the distances in the ATO were shorter, it was quite dangerous for u-boats coming and going to their home ports, no? We knew where they were based, and they needed to sneak in and out. Larger boats with more range/stores would have meant fewer trips into port.
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